Weekend news roundup: 16-18 November

Everything you missed while you were relaxing

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Google and Sun Microsystems may be in for a heated battle over Google's new Android operating system and how it handles Java, according to InfoWorld.

The publication is reporting that Google decided against using the standards-based Java Micro Edition (JME) in favour of its own virtual machine called Dalvik, which is capable of running Java applications. And while developers claim the use of Dalvik has its benefits and pitfalls, Google may have created the machine to get around paying licensing fees to Sun Microsystems.

Can Sun Microsystems derail Android?

In order to save mobile phone manufacturers the cost of licensing JME from Sun if any modifications were performed, Google created Dalvik. And while some are claiming this was a smart move on the part of Google, its machine simply converts JME bytecodes into Dalvik bytecodes. And if it is discovered that Google used some of Sun's intellectual property to build Dalvik - a definite possibility given the almost identical nature of both machines - Sun could quite easily derail Android.

Although it wasn't planning to do so until Monday, Dell announced the immediate release of the rumoured XPS One all-in-one desktop. The XPS One comes in four SKUs that, while customisable, are suited for 'Style, Music, Performance and Entertainment.' The systems sport Windows Vista Home Premium, 20-inch screens and most importantly, offer a small footprint with just a keyboard, mouse and the computer components stashed behind the monitor in a fashion that is quite similar to Apple's iMac. The prices for the 'Style', 'Music', 'Performance' and 'Entertainment' machines start at $1,499 (£733), $1,788 (£874), $1,999 (£978) and $2,399 (£1173), respectively.

Sidekick Slide's Sickness

T-Mobile has pulled the Sidekick Slide off its shelves due to a sudden restart issue witnessed by owners. According to sources, the sliding action of the mobile phone causes it to lose its connection with the battery and force a shut down.

Alienware has announced that it will unveil two new notebooks - the m15x and the m17x - in New York City on Monday. And although the company wanted to keep details sealed, it has sent its mailing list subscribers a secret website that allows users to decode the message to find out more about the notebooks and win a trip to New York City.

Besides that, Alienware confirmed that each notebook will come in your choice of two themes - Skullcap and Ripley - and leaked specs suggest the new machines will sport a GeForce 8800M GTX video card and the m17x may be able to host two of those chipsets in SLI mode.